TeenLife 2024 Guide to Summer Programs

By CARRIE FINROCK
New York School of Interior Design
Summer Pre-College Program
Why did you choose to participate
in this program?
I discovered NYSID Summer Pre-College while
reviewing the College’s admissions application
requirements on NYSID.edu. I already knew
about NYSID’s great reputation as a college
but was not aware of the summer offering
courses for high school students. With the
local university program I had planned to take
being canceled, I got permission from my
parents and time off from work to enroll in
NYSID’s Summer Pre-College I, which focuses
on the basics of residential interior design,
drafting skills, understanding floor plans
and developing a design concept and color
scheme. At the end of the 10-day class, you
have a design for a New York City apartment.
What was the most memorable moment
of your program?
“All of it! To be honest, I went into it with
relatively low, but optimistic, expectations
about the online learning experience. The
virtual high school experience that I had
during COVID was nowhere near what on-site
learning was, so I didn’t know how good a
virtual experience could be. Immediately from
the first day, I just LOVED it. It completely exceeded
my expectations.” In fact, Carrie loved
Pre-College I so much that she signed up for
Pre-College II to continue the
experience and learn more about interior
design opportunities related to designing
public and professional spaces.
What impressed you the most about
NYSID’s Summer Pre-College?
“The professors! They were so smart, enthusiastic,
and encouraging. They showed me how to build upon
and bring my ideas to life. I am still amazed about the
amount of information I learned in a four-week period.
I have never had another class in school that taught me
so much in such a short period of time. And the professors
so clearly love what they do–both as interior designers
and as teachers. Professor Pam was so passionate in
the way she explained an idea she had for a bathroom
that I felt like, I want to do that–I want to have a design
career that excites me that much.”
2024 TEENLIFE GUIDE TO SUMMER PROGRAMS | 81